I am writing to you as a concerned resident of Staten Island. I am pleading with you to stop the destruction of Mount Manresa. The developers plan to build 250 townhomes on the park-like site. This would be detrimental to all members of Staten Island, not just the residents of the community in which Mount Manresa lies.

I urge you to come to Staten Island to tour the site. Your breath will be taken away by the beauty of the property and the historical buildings. Immediately, a sense of serenity will overcome you.

Staten Island, the city’s most overdeveloped borough, does not need anymore housing communities. Our roads are already overcrowded, and the country-like feel that Staten Island once possessed continues to slip away each time a large fully detached home is torn down to make way for clusters of townhomes.

Moreover, preserving Mount Manresa as a park for all to enjoy would bring positive attention and more tourism to Staten Island, all while helping us withstand our reputation of being the borough with the most parks.

I implore you use your authority to not let Mount Manresa face the same fate as Penn Station. Any New Yorker, history buff or not, will admit that the demolition of that monumental building was a disgrace.

Mount Manresa is held in high regard to all Staten Islanders from all faiths and cultural beliefs. Please don’t ignore our cries and pleas for helping to sustain the cultural and architectural gem that is Mount Manresa.